


Colours

by charliewrites



Category: Lovely Little Losers, Nothing Much to Do
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fluff, M/M, Tiny bit of Angst, well mostly fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-10 21:16:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8939671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/charliewrites/pseuds/charliewrites
Summary: What do you do when you meet your soulmate? How do you make that relationship work?





	

**Author's Note:**

> So. This was supposed to just be a short, nice soulmate au, but as usual, I got a bit carried away.   
> Shoutout to rumplesnorcack, who once again agreed to be my beta. You're the best!

Whenever someone asked him, Peter would deny that he believed that colours existed. Life was black, white and grey shades and anyone who claimed otherwise was delusional. His mum had told him about the colours when she’d told him bed time stories when he was a child, describing the experience of seeing it for the first time so beautifully. Oh, how he’d longed for the day when he’d see them for himself. But he was 19 now and hadn’t seen a single spec of colour yet. 

‘You just haven’t met your soulmate yet,’ Ben had said one night when they’d been talking about it as a group – him, Meg, Bea, and Ben. Bea and Ben had been tangled up in each other as usual; the only two people of their group who claimed to see colours. 

‘There’s no way you can convince me that the two of you aren’t just lying,’ Peter said, raising his eyebrows at the pair. 

‘We would never!’ Ben said, sounding and looking affronted. Bea looked a mirror image of him. 

‘You so would!’ Meg chimed in, launching them into a debate about how far Bea and Ben would go to win an argument, both separate and as a pair.

Secretly, though, Peter wished for it to be true – he _was_ a hopeless romantic after all. There was still a part of him that hoped and longed for the day when the world would morph into a myriad of colours, the way his mum had described it. He wanted to experience it, he just didn’t know if it was going to happen.

That wasn’t on his mind when he was sitting in a café with Meg, Bea, and Ben on a Thursday night, though. They were there to support Paige at the Open Mic. Peter wasn’t really one to go to Open Mics, but Paige was a good friend from his theatre group, and his friends had agreed to come since Bea had gone to school with Paige at one point, so here they were. 

He had a hot chocolate in his hands and was mindlessly enjoying the buzzing of conversations around him that was happening between acts. So far, there hadn’t been anyone _great_. They’d all been decent but no more than that. That was to be expected at an Open Mic, though, he supposed. 

A guy with a guitar and messy hair took the stage quietly. He didn’t say anything, just sat down and made sure his guitar was plugged in properly, adjusting the height of the microphone as the chatter died down in time with more and more people noticing that the next act was on. He was cute, Peter thought. Very handsome in his huge sweater. 

The guy took a sweeping look at the audience, took a deep breath, and nodded to himself before he started playing, his fingers running skilfully across the fret. 

Then he started singing, and Peter’s world was forever changed. 

Somehow, _colours_ were _pouring out of his mouth_ and into the things around him. It started with the guitar. Then the guy himself. The fairy lights behind him. Then the audience, a little bit at a time. 

It was nothing like his mum had told him it would be. She’d told him that it would be gradual; a colour at a time. But it felt like all the colours were pouring out of the guy’s mouth all at once, like in a cartoon or something. As the colours showed themselves to him, the names of them came to him. Blue, green, brown, red, purple. He knew the names of them all, despite not having known them a few minutes ago.

What did this mean? Was the musician his soulmate?

His mum had said that he’d start seeing colours when he heard his soulmate’s voice, and this guy’s voice was the only one he could hear right now – not that Peter minded, the guy had the voice of an angel. But Bea hadn’t claimed to see colours until her and Ben had started communicating instead of talking _at_ each other, and she’d described it – when she’d told him about it late one night – more or less like the world just suddenly being full of vibrant colours – ‘It was like being hit by a truck,’ she’d said with massive eyes – so Peter wasn’t really sure about the rules. Maybe it was different for everyone. Maybe he should ask Ben about it?

The song was an original, and how appropriate it was that this song – the song that effectively filled his life with vibrant colours – was about new beginnings. 

Peter was absolutely spellbound, both by the music and the streaks of colour that flowed from the musician’s mouth and landed in their rightful place. 

The musician looked up, then, right into Peter’s eyes, and smiled. His cheeks turned red which made Peter’s heart beat a little faster. Well, that was new. And quite charming.

Then, before he knew it, the song was over and the musician made his exit, though not before letting them know that his name was Balthazar Jones. Each act was only allowed one song, or bit or whatever, and Peter found that he didn’t really agree that that rule should pertain to this Balthazar Jones. In fact, it should just be a Balthazar Jones concert. He should definitely play all night.

He had to talk to him.

But with the music gone, the colours suddenly gave him a headache. There were just _so many_ of them, and they were _everywhere_. He tried squeezing his eyes shut for a moment to see if that helped but to no avail. And it didn’t help to just focus on his cup of half-drunk hot chocolate, because the cup was a vibrant yellow that only made things worse. Someone was talking to him but he couldn’t hear what they were saying. It was like the colours were so loud visually that they overpowered his hearing. 

He had to get out. He had to get home. It was semi-dark out so the walk home shouldn’t be too bad. He grabbed his jacket, mumbling an excuse to his friends about feeling ill and left the café.

Once outside, he leaned on the building and took a deep breath of the fresh air. His head was throbbing but the darkness made it better. Had the darkness always been blue? 

He pulled on his jacket and started the walk home. The flat wasn’t far and the cool evening air was slowly making his headache bearable. Why had no one warned him about how violent this experience was? His mum had said that it was gradual – a colour at a time. That didn’t help him much. She’d had time to get used to them. 

Bea, on the other hand, had compared it to being hit by a truck. That was more akin to how he felt. She’d definitely give him a hard time for having been so vocal about not believing in colours before she’d even consider helping him, but she was his best friend. Maybe she could help. 

He reached the flat and decided against turning on the lights – he didn’t want to know what colours the sofas were. Besides, for some reason it was easier to navigate in the dark than ever before. When he got to his room, he stripped down to his underwear and flopped, face-first, onto the bed, willing himself to fall asleep. Maybe he could sleep the headache away. 

-

For all the colours that Balthazar had sung about in his life, he had yet to see one. That didn’t bother him, though; he’d see them when it was meant to be and until then he was content singing about other people’s experiences with it. Besides, life was about more than colour. To him, music was probably more important. He didn’t know what he’d do if he couldn’t hear music one day. 

Sometimes he kind of wanted to see the colours, though. Like when his mum said that he should wear that maroon shirt on Christmas. Or when Chelsea talked about how beautiful the flowers on Paige’s dresses were. It wasn’t a burning desire or anything, but those were some of the moments when he’d sigh and think that life sometimes would be a lot easier if he could see what they saw. 

‘Someday, darling,’ his mum had said one night when he’d talked to her about it. He’d been 15 and his friends were slowly beginning to see colour. Not all of them, by a long shot, but enough for him to complain about it a bit. ‘Sooner than you know it, in fact. Suddenly, some handsome guy will come up to you and change everything. But, please, promise me that you won’t forget to enjoy life until it happens.’

He smiled at her. ‘I promise, mum.’

So he made it a rule to find at least one thing every day that made life enjoyable. Music and the friends he made though it were probably the most frequent things on the list. 

One Thursday night, he played an Open Mic at a local café that Paige had told him about – she was playing too. It was a pretty standard gig; he played one of his original songs without too many mistakes, and people seemed to like it. During the song, he looked up and saw that this one guy was looking at him as if he was made of magic. There was wonder and amazement in those eyes, and Balthazar felt his cheeks heat up. He smiled and then looked down at his guitar again; if he hadn’t, he might have stopped playing before the song was over. He left the stage, still with that guy from the audience on his mind. That look on his face was one he hadn’t quite seen before.

When Paige was done playing, she and Chelsea took him to say hi to some of their friends who were in the audience. He’d met Bea before, though he couldn’t remember where – maybe she’d been to another Open Mic? Her boyfriend, Ben, seemed nice enough, and so did the other girl, Meg. 

‘Where’s Pete? He told me he’d be here,’ Paige said when they’d all been introduced and were sitting around the table. 

‘He was, but he said something about a headache and left,’ Meg said with an eye roll. ‘You were great, though. You too, Balthazar.’

‘Thanks,’ Balthazar said, never sure how to take compliments. He wasn’t entirely sure what to do while the others talked so he spent a few minutes answering the few questions the others asked him, and looking around the café aimlessly. After about fifteen minutes, he excused himself and went home. It was a good night, though. 

The next Monday, he and Paige were walking towards the practice rooms in the music building, talking about the new song that Paige was dying to show him. She seemed pretty excited about it. 

‘Paige!’ a voice behind them called and Paige stopped and turned around. Balthazar followed suit. A guy in sunglasses came up to them.

‘Peter!’ Paige said and gave the guy a hug. He seemed familiar. ‘Have you finally recovered? Costa’s desperate to have you back in rehearsals.’

‘Oh, yeah, I’m much better. Sorry I missed your performance, though.’

‘That’s alright,’ she said and waved him off. ‘By the way, Peter, this is my friend, Balthazar. Balthazar, this is Peter from my theatre group.’

Peter extended his hand, and Balthazar shook it. ‘Now, you, I did see. You’re amazing.’

Balthazar felt himself getting shy. He remembered where he’d seen Peter before, now. Peter had been the guy with that look on his face. ‘Thanks.’

For a moment, Peter just looked at Balthazar, like he was searching for something, but he couldn’t figure out what it was. It didn’t look like he found it, either, because his face fell a little. 

‘Um, so how’s Chelsea?’ Peter then asked Paige, and they started chatting. Balthazar couldn’t help but notice the stolen glances in his direction, though. He could see it from behind the sunglasses. He started fiddling with his sleeve. Peter was cute, there was no denying that. And having a cute guy check you out is a little off-putting. 

‘I was just about to play Balth one of my new songs. Do you want to join?’ Paige then said, a few minutes into their conversation, and Balthazar looked up to see Peter’s reaction. 

‘Sure, if you don’t mind,’ he said with a shrug. There was something different about him now. It was like he was more... lively, in a way. It was hard to tell what exactly had changed, but... 

Something behind Peter caught his attention; a summer dress. A _pink_ summer dress, to be exact.

_He could see colours._

That’s what had changed about Peter. He wasn’t just a mix of shades of grey; his hair was golden and shining in the sunlight, his lips pink. His shirt was red. The sky was blue, the grass was green. 

‘Balth, are you okay?’ Paige asked, pulling him back to reality. The pattern on her grey shirt was even more beautiful in colour. 

‘I... um,’ he stammered. ‘Can I talk to you for a second?’

‘Yeah, sure,’ she said, looking concerned. They excused themselves from Peter, who didn’t seem to mind, and stepped out of his earshot. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘His shirt is red,’ Balthazar said quietly but with emphasis, his heart pounding. 

‘Yeah, s...’ She trailed off as realisation washed over her face. ‘You can see colours,’ she whispered.

Balthazar nodded and swallowed hard. A million questions were running through his head. ‘What do I do?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Do I tell him?’

Paige laughed a little. ‘I think he already knows.’

‘You don’t know that. There are people who aren’t their soulmate’s soulmate,’ Balthazar said, his chest tightening at the thought.

‘Balth, that’s very, very rare.’

‘But possible,’ Balthazar said trying his best to not look back at Peter. ‘He doesn’t seem like someone who’s seeing colours for the first time, does he?’

‘Well, no, but...’ Paige said and looked at Peter for a moment, mulling it over. ‘But he heard you play last week. He’s probably had some time to get used to it.’

Balthazar hadn’t thought about that. He took a deep breath. ‘So what do I do?’

‘Follow my lead,’ she said and went back to Peter, who had been looking at his phone but put it away as they came back to him. ‘So I’ve decided that my song isn’t quite ready for people to hear it yet, but we could grab some coffee?’

‘Yeah, actually, that sounds great!’ Peter said. ‘Where to?’

They went to Boyet’s. Balthazar tried to act natural and tried not to look like he was seeing the world for the first time. That’s how it felt, though. Everything was so much more beautiful than before, more full of life. He understood, now, why so many songs were written about it. He’d definitely write songs about it himself – he had a couple of ideas brewing in his head already. He still had a lot of questions but he also _really_ wanted to get to know Peter. 

The more Peter talked – and Paige kept him talking about anything and everything while they were walking – the more vibrant the colours slowly became; the red on Peter’s shirt got deeper, the leaves got greener, and the sky bluer. 

They arrived at Boyet’s, ordered their coffees and sat down at a table in the corner. The menus were a pale yellow, the chairs a warm brown. Balthazar didn’t say much. He didn’t know how to let Peter know what he saw without it sounding weird. 

They hadn’t been there for more than five minutes when Paige pulled out her phone. ‘Chelsea needs me back home. But you two say and chat. Get to know each other.’

Balthazar looked at her, and she winked at him before saying her goodbyes and leaving them. It was like she’d tricked them on a date. 

For a moment, they just sat there in silence. Balthazar kept his eyes on his coffee; the disposable cup was yellow, though not as bold as the bike he’d seen someone pass them by on, on their way there. It matched the menus.

Peter cleared his throat, and Balthazar looked up. ‘So how do you know Paige?’

‘Um, well, we met at an Open Mic a few months ago. What about you?’

‘Oh, I have a theatre class with Chels, and we’re all in a small theatre company together, so...’ Peter said. He was still wearing his sunglasses even though they were inside. Either he had a good reason or he thought it was cool. Balthazar couldn’t quite figure out which one was true yet. 

‘Right, she told me about Costa. Don’t know if I’d be able to put up with his crazy ideas,’ Balthazar said, making Peter laugh a little. That made him feel good; Peter had a great laugh. 

‘Yeah, he’s pretty weird. But he means well, which is why we’re all still working with him, I think,’ Peter said and smiled at Balthazar. What a wonderful smile that was. Balthazar couldn’t help but smile back. ‘I really liked that song you played at the Open Mic, by the way. It was really good.’

‘Thanks,’ Balthazar said, his face heating up, and he looked down at his coffee. 

‘Yeah, you’re really talented. And the theme of the song was very fitting, too,’ Peter added with a laugh and took a sip of his coffee. 

Balthazar frowned in confusion. ‘How’s that?’

Peter opened his mouth but no words came out. ‘Oh, you know... just... I mean...’ he stammered. 

Then it dawned on Balthazar what he’d meant, and he let out a breathy laugh, shaking his head at himself. Peter was the one who looked confused now. Balthazar smiled at him. He felt brave.

‘That shirt suits you.’

Peter looked down as if to remind himself what shirt he had on. Then he looked up at Balthazar again. ‘Do you...?’

Balthazar nodded and tried to suppress his smile. ‘Red’s a good colour on you.’

Peter looked at him for a long time. Balthazar couldn’t quite read him because of the sunglasses, but he imagined that he was processing. Then he smiled and whispered, ‘I didn’t think...’

Balthazar looked down to hide his smile. ‘Yeah, well.’

‘When?’ Peter asked, and when Balthazar looked confused, continued, ‘I mean, it didn’t look like it happened immediately.’

‘Right. No, it just kind of seemed to happen... I don’t know... gradually. Like, the more you speak, the brighter they get. It’s still happening now,’ he explained, looking around at all the different colours on people’s clothes, bags, hair, and skin. 

‘Like, a colour at a time?’

‘No, more like... like someone’s turning up the brightness very slowly. Like they’re fading in.’

‘Hmm...’ Peter said, looking around too. ‘I guess it really is different for everyone.’

‘What do you mean?’ Balthazar asked and looked at Peter. 

‘Well, my mum used to tell me that it would come one colour at a time. And my friend, Bea, said it happened all at once, like someone just flicked a switch in her brain and then, bam, everything was in colour.’

‘Ah, yeah. Paige said that they kind of pulsated from Chelsea, like an aura or something,’ Balthazar said, looking off into the distance. Then he snapped back into reality and looked at Peter. With his heart beating fast, he asked: ‘What about you?’

Peter looked at him for a moment, before he shook his head. ‘It’s embarrassing.’

‘Oh, come on. How bad can it be, huh?’ Balthazar asked and tried to seem casual about it. It was hard, though; he was a little desperate to know what it had been like for Peter. 

‘Pretty bad,’ Peter said. Balthazar raised his eyebrows at him, and he sighed. ‘Fine. It was at your gig last week.’ He got a fond smile on his face. ‘When you started singing... It was like... this is going to sound bad, but... it was like the colours came pouring out of your mouth.’

Balthazar tried to hold back his laughter. ‘Are you telling me that I _vomited_ colours?’

This made Peter laugh too, and for a moment they just laughed together at the ridiculous image. ‘No, not like that,’ Peter said when they’d calmed down a little. ‘It was more like... you know when it’s so cold out that you can see your breath in front of you?’ 

Balthazar nodded. 

‘It was kinda like that. Only, instead of evaporating they kind of... flew around and landed on the stuff and people they belonged to. It was magical, really,’ Peter explained. It was like his whole face lit up as he described it which made Balthazar’s chest flutter. 

‘Sounds beautiful,’ Balthazar said quietly.

‘It was,’ Peter said with a fond smile on his face. Then he frowned. ‘But it was all at once and it gave me a massive headache. I’ve only just gotten rid of it but it’s still a bit much, hence the sunglasses.’

‘Ah,’ Balthazar said. ‘I was wondering about that.’

Peter laughed again. ‘Oh man, I must look so pretentious.’

‘Just a little bit,’ Balthazar teased, and Peter gently kicked him under the table, making him laugh. 

-

That Friday afternoon, Peter had asked Bea to help him pick out an outfit for his first proper date with Balthazar. There was an argument to be made about calling that coffee thing a date, but this was dinner at a restaurant that was planned as a date, not something one of their friends had tricked them into. Although, he did owe Paige a massive thank you. 

He’d finally gotten to a point where he could go without his sunglasses without having to squint when he was out in the light, which was a big victory for him so this was his chance to really _see_ Balthazar the way he had that first time. As much as the sunglasses helped, he hadn’t had the chance to see Balthazar’s eye colour, which he really wanted to for some reason. They hadn’t had a chance to see each other since that coffee date, but they’d texted almost constantly so that made it a little bit better. 

Bea was sitting on his bed while he tried on one shirt after the other. He’d already settled for the black skinny jeans but he needed some guidance when it came to the shirt. 

‘Half of the clothes you own are ridiculous, Pete,’ Bea said as he was buttoning up his white shirt with blue flowers on. 

‘I didn’t ask you here to mock my fashion sense,’ Peter said. ‘Just tell me if I look okay.’

Bea rolled her eyes as Peter showed off the shirt. ‘You look fine. What’s the big deal anyway? It’s just a date.’

‘I know, I just... I want it to go well,’ Peter sighed and looked at himself in the mirror, messing with his hair. He hadn’t told anyone but Balthazar and Paige that he could see colours yet – well, Paige had guessed – and he’d asked both of them to keep it to themselves. Balthazar wasn’t a problem, because he didn’t really know Peter’s friends. Paige, on the other hand, knew all of them. He trusted her, though. She was excellent at keeping secrets.

‘Who is this person? You haven’t said anything about them,’ Bea said. 

Peter took a moment to decide whether or not he wanted her to know anything. Then he went to sit next to her on the bed. She should know. She was his best friend. 

‘You know Paige’s friend, Balthazar, right?’ he asked her.

Her eyes got huge. ‘Her musician friend? The one from the Open Mic?’ 

Peter nodded.

‘How did you meet him? You left before they came down after they’d played!’

‘I ran into them a few days ago, and Balth and I really hit it off,’ Peter said, the butterflies in his stomach stirring at the mere fact that he had said the phrase, _Balth and I_. He tried not to smile as big as he wanted to. 

Bea studied him for a moment. Then, she slowly asked, ‘what colour is my shirt?’

Peter frowned. ‘What?’

‘You heard me, what colour is my shirt?’

He looked down on it. It was maroon. ‘I don’t know,’ he lied. He didn’t know exactly _why_ he was lying, he just was. 

‘You’re a terrible liar,’ Bea laughed. 

‘What? No, I’m not!’ Peter said in an attempt to defend himself.

‘Yeah, you are. Peter, I have known you since we were children; I know when you’re lying. You can see colours, can’t you?’ Bea asked. 

For a moment, Peter scoured his brain for some excuse or way to distract her, but then he figured that she’d find out eventually. He sighed. ‘Don’t tell Ben.’

‘I KNEW IT!’ she exclaimed, her fists raised victoriously.

‘Be quiet!’ Peter hissed. 

‘Sorry,’ Bea said, although she looked as far from sorry as possible. ‘So that’s why you’ve been going all vampire lately.’

‘Yeah,’ Peter admitted. ‘It was just... the first week was just _a lot_.’

‘I remember. It’s overwhelming, isn’t it?’

‘Very. It wasn’t like you explained, though. It was different for me,’ Peter told her. Truth was, he’d been dying to talk to her about it. He had Balthazar to gush with about how new and beautiful everything looked, but he’d missed being able to talk to his best friend. 

‘How so?’ Bea asked, cocking her head to the side, and he told her all about it.

-

When he got to the restaurant, Peter was already waiting for him outside. He looked really good. The shirt, though a bold choice, suited him quite well. 

Neither of them knew how exactly to say hello. Did they hug? Shake hands? They settled for an awkward wave at each other. 

‘So, shall we?’ Peter asked, gesturing at the door. 

Balthazar nodded and followed Peter in. He tried to act casual but the truth was that he was more nervous about this date than he’d ever been. What if it went badly? What would happen then? Had anyone ever broken up with their soulmate? How was he already thinking about break ups when they hadn’t even gotten into a relationship yet?

‘You look really good,’ Peter said as they were sitting down.

Balthazar felt himself blush. ‘Thanks. So do you.’

‘Thanks,’ Peter said, looking down. He looked so different without the sunglasses; it was a little easier to read his face. 

‘No sunglasses?’ Balthazar asked, partly out of curiosity, partly because he didn’t want the conversation to die, especially not this early in the evening. 

‘Oh, yeah, I guess I’ve gotten used to it now. Doesn’t feel as overwhelming anymore,’ Peter said, smiling at Balthazar. There was a sparkle in his eyes that made Balthazar a little gooey inside. ‘I feel like there’s so much pressure right now.’

‘What do you mean?’ Balthazar asked, frowning. 

‘For the date to go well,’ Peter explained.

‘Ah, yeah, me too,’ Balthazar admitted, feeling a little relieved that he wasn’t the only one. ‘Feels like there’s a lot at stake, yeah?’

‘Right,’ Peter said, looking a little more relaxed. ‘Here’s an idea. How about we try to forget the whole colour thing and just... try and have a nice evening getting to know each other.’

‘Yeah, alright. That sounds good,’ Balthazar said, smiling at Peter. 

‘Good. So, tell me about your family,’ Peter said, and Balthazar let out a startled laugh. He hadn’t expected Peter to be quite so blunt. But then he started talking.

The conversation ran smoothly from there, and Balthazar couldn’t remember when he’d last laughed so much and so hard in one night. Peter was funny and charming, he was smart, and he had beautiful, brown eyes that Balthazar could get lost in if he got the chance. 

Once they’d finished their meal, Peter suggested they go for a walk in the park nearby, since it wasn’t _that_ late. Balthazar didn’t even care that it was getting close to 11pm; he agreed with Peter that it was too early to end the date. He wouldn’t mind if it went on for a few more hours.

They were walking along the path when their hands bumped into each other, and Peter grabbed a hold of Balthazar’s. A small smile crept up on Balthazar’s lips as his hand was tingling at Peter’s touch. At one point they found a picnic bench and sat down, facing each other, their joined hands resting on the table. 

Balthazar looked up at the stars. It was a cloudless night, and there were a million stars out. ‘Do you know any constellations?’ 

‘Not really,’ Peter said, and Balthazar could feel his eyes on him. It was a good feeling, but it did make him feel a little shy. ‘Do you?’

‘Nah,’ Balthazar admitted. He looked back down at Peter. ‘Everything looks so different.’

‘Yeah,’ Peter said and looked around them before looking back at Balthazar. ‘It’s a good different, though.’

Balthazar smiled at him. ‘Definitely.’

They sat there, looking at each other for a moment. It felt like they were the only people in the world. Like this was the only thing that mattered; the two of them, holding hands under the stars. It was like time stood still. 

‘Can I kiss you?’ Peter asked quietly, and Balthazar’s pulse sped up. 

‘Yes,’ Balthazar replied just as quietly and swallowed. His heart was pounding and he was sure Peter could feel his pulse in his hand.

They met in the middle for the sweetest kiss Balthazar had ever known. Peter put a hand on the side of Balthazar’s face, and Balthazar rested his on Peter’s shoulder. They were still holding hands, and Peter tightened his grip as the kiss progressed. Balthazar never wanted it to end. 

But it did. Peter pulled away gently and rested his forehead against Balthazar’s. 

‘You’re incredible,’ he mumbled, caressing Balthazar’s cheek with his thumb. 

‘So are you,’ Balthazar whispered.

-

The next few weeks went by in a blur. Whenever Peter wasn’t working, rehearsing, or in class, he was with Balthazar. They easily fell into a rhythm, and three weeks into knowing each other, they’d developed a habit of sleeping over at each other’s places, depending on who was getting up early the next day. They went on dates as often as possible, and they studied together. Peter just couldn’t get enough of Balthazar. They could talk about anything. It felt like they’d known each other their whole lives. Sometimes, Peter would just watch as Balthazar played around on his instruments and wrote songs; it was his favourite thing to do. Balthazar seemed to get a little shy around him sometimes, but then Peter would ask him to teach him to play something, or ask about an instrument or something, and Balthazar’s eyes would light up as he started rambling. 

Bea, Meg, and Ben seemed to get used to having Balthazar around pretty quickly, and they seemed to really like him, which was a very good thing. What was even better was that Balthazar seemed to like them too. 

Balthazar’s flatmate, Kit, on the other hand, needed to warm up to Peter, it seemed. He wasn’t rude or anything, he was perfectly pleasant and nice, but Peter could feel that Kit was a bit cautious about him. Balthazar said not to take it personally, and that Kit just knew that Balthazar hadn’t been the best at taking care of himself in the past. But the more time Peter spent at Balthazar and Kit’s place, the more Kit seemed to like him. 

One night, when Peter was sleeping over at Balthazar’s, he woke up around 3am for some reason. He tried going back to sleep, but it was no use, so he snuck out of bed and went to the kitchen to get some water. 

The lights were already on, and Kit was sitting there, fully dressed, with books, notes, and a laptop in front of him. For a split second, Peter thought about doubling back to Balthazar’s room, if anything to put on a bit more clothes – he’d only been sleeping in boxers and a T-shirt. But before he could do anything, Kit looked up and saw him. Well, he might as well get his water now.

‘Paper?’ Peter asked, because it felt wrong not to say something. 

‘Yeah, I thought I’d be done by midnight, but I guess I was wrong,’ Kit said and stretched in his chair. 

Peter hummed in response, leaning on the counter with his glass of water in his hand. He didn’t know what came over him, but for some reason, it felt important that he asked, ‘Is there a particular reason you don’t like me?’

‘Huh?’ Kit asked and turned his head to look at Peter. When Peter raised his eyebrows, Kit sighed, got up, and walked to the coffee maker. ‘It’s nothing personal. But I’ve seen how some people treat their soulmates like they’re their property. It’s like they think that just because they’re meant to be together it doesn’t mean that they have to treat the other with respect.’

Peter couldn’t help but take offense to that. ‘You don’t think I treat Balth with respect?’

‘No, from what I’ve seen, you think of Balth as some sort of higher being,’ Kit said with a chuckle, making Peter blush a little. He didn’t think he’d been _that_ obvious in his adoration of Balthazar. ‘That can be unhealthy too, you know; forgetting that he’s a person.’

Peter didn’t know how to respond to that. _Was_ he forgetting that? He didn’t think so.

Kit laughed a little. ‘Look, I’m just being careful with you because you both look like you’ve jumped in head-first without thinking about the potential consequences, that’s all. I’m sure we’ll be fine as long as you treat Balth right.’

For a moment, Peter looked at him, before deciding that that was a good enough reason for him. ‘Okay,’ he said and emptied his glass of water. ‘Good night, Kit,’ he said and put the glass by the sink before heading back to Balthazar’s bedroom. 

‘Good night, Peter,’ he heard Kit say from the kitchen, before closed the door behind him and went back to bed.

After about a month, people were starting to ask whether they were in a relationship, and whether it was serious. It had started with Ben, who always had the goofiest smile on when Balthazar was over or even mentioned in conversation. Then Paige started asking at rehearsals, how serious him and Balthazar were. 

‘We haven’t talked about it,’ Peter said with a shrug and tried to get back into character.

‘Come on, Peter, you’re practically living together,’ Paige said just as Peter’s phone buzzed. He checked it. 

Balthy:  
 _Gonna have to stay until 11 at work :(_

‘And you’re texting all the time!’ Paige added as Peter typed out his answer. 

Peter:  
 _We’ll probably finish late here as well. We can still walk home together <3 _

‘Why haven’t you talked about it?’ Paige asked as Peter was putting his phone back into his pocket. 

‘I don’t know, we just haven’t, okay? Can we please do some rehearsing now?’ Peter asked, and Paige sighed and nodded. 

A week later, Peter was spending the weekend at Balthazar’s place, hanging out in the living room while Balthazar made them tea. They were going to watch a film and order take-out while Kit was out with his girlfriend, Freddie. However, Freddie had arrived about an hour before they were set to leave so she was hanging out in the living room as well, while Kit was getting ready in his room. 

‘So you’re Balth’s boyfriend?’ Freddie asked, clearly trying to kill the awkward silence. 

Peter shrugged noncommittally, not wanting to say the wrong thing in case Balthazar heard. He didn’t want to say that he was if it turned out that Balthazar didn’t want that, but it also felt wrong to say that he wasn’t. He supposed they were in a place between dating and not dating, at least until they decided where they stood. 

Freddie seemed to study him and looked like she was about to say something just as Kit came out from his room and asked Freddie if she was ready to go. Peter let out a quiet sigh of relief when they closed the front door behind them. 

Balthazar came out of the kitchen carrying two mugs of steaming hot tea that he set on the table in front of them. Peter watched him fondly as he scrolled through the list of films on Netflix to find one he wanted to watch. 

Peter cleared his throat, then. He had something he wanted to ask and he’d put it off for too long now. Something that might even indicate how serious this thing between them really was.

Balthazar looked at him to signal that Peter had his full attention. 

‘So my brother’s coming to visit next weekend.’

Balthazar looked like he was trying to look as neutral as possible. ‘Right.’

‘I was wondering if you’d like to meet him,’ Peter continued, a little more nervous now than he’d been a moment ago. 

‘Oh, um...’ Balthazar said, sat back, and pulled at his sleeves. ‘I don’t know, Pete. That’s a big thing.’

Peter turned so that he was facing Balthazar properly. ‘Well, yeah, I guess, but it doesn’t have to be. I mean, it’s just John.’

‘It’s your _brother_. I don’t know if I’m ready for that yet,’ Balthazar said and pulled his knees up to his chin. He looked so small when he did that. 

‘Okay,’ Peter said calmly and put a hand on his knee. ‘If you’re not ready, I won’t push you.’

Balthazar smiled at him. ‘Thanks Pete.’

Peter smiled back and gave his knee a squeeze before they returned to finding a movie. They settled on _Lilo and Stitch_ , cuddling contently on the sofa. Peter kept thinking about their conversation, though. 

Balthazar had said that he wasn’t ready to meet his brother – _yet_. That one little word gave Peter a lot of hope. It made it sound like Balthazar was at least a little bit serious about what they had together. 

-

The weekend that John came to visit was the first time in what felt like forever that Peter and Balthazar didn’t spend the night together, and Balthazar really missed Peter. He had a lot of plans and was busy all weekend, but at the end of the day, the bed felt very empty without Peter. He kept telling himself that it was stupid. He’d known Peter for a relatively short time, yet here he was, missing him more than ever. Saturday night, when he came home from having had dinner with Paige and Chelsea and was a little tipsy, he even found himself putting on a jumper that Peter had left at his place. Should he have agreed to meet John, even if he didn’t really think he was ready for that? Did Peter wanting him to meet John mean that he wanted them to be serious? He’d said that meeting his brother didn’t have to be a big deal, but what did that even mean? Did it mean that he _didn’t_ want to be official and serious? Those were the thoughts that plagued him when he was alone that weekend, and Saturday night was no exception. He sat there, on the bed, smelling the sleeves, when Kit gently knocked on his door. 

‘How was dinner?’ he asked and sat down on the bed next to Balthazar. 

‘Yeah, good,’ Balthazar said, hoping Kit hadn’t seen him inhaling the smell of his kind-of-boyfriend like a complete loser. 

‘Was Peter there?’ Kit asked. Balthazar couldn’t quite read him. 

‘Nah,’ he said and wrapped his arms around his legs. ‘He’s still got his brother visiting. He doesn’t leave until tomorrow afternoon, I think.’

Kit nodded in silence for a moment before asking, ‘are you two actually dating yet?’

Balthazar shrugged and looked at his knees. 

‘You still haven’t talked about it?’ Kit asked, a little exasperated, and Balthazar shook his head. ‘Why not?’

‘It’s just... it’s so good between us right now and I’m afraid that conversation will change that,’ Balthazar mumbled. His phone buzzed on his bedside table. He glanced at it to see that it was Peter. 

‘Balth, if that’s the case, you’re better off without him,’ Kit said, looking him in the eyes to emphasise how serious he was about that statement. 

‘I guess... But he’s my soulmate, Kit. He’s the reason I see the world in such wonderful colours.’

‘If he truly is your soulmate, I’m sure it’ll work out, whether it’s for the two of you to grow old as friends or as lovers. But you _need_ to talk about it. I don’t want to see you get hurt,’ Kit said.

Balthazar felt his shoulders rise up to his ears, and he tightened the grip around his legs. The thing was, he didn’t _want_ to grow old as friends with Peter. He didn’t know if he could; it might be too painful after knowing what almost-dating felt like. It left him wanting more. But talking to Peter about it... 

‘I don’t know... maybe we won’t need to talk. Maybe we’ll just naturally slip into this...’ he trailed off when he saw how sceptical Kit looked.

‘That hasn’t happened yet and I don’t think anything will change if you don’t say something,’ he said, and Balthazar looked down at his knees. He knew he was right. That didn’t mean that the thought of bringing it up didn’t make his stomach fill with knots, though. ‘Promise me you’ll talk to him about it?’

‘Yeah, alright,’ Balthazar mumbled, partly because he knew he had to at some point, partly because he kind of wanted Kit to stop nagging him about it.

‘Balth,’ Kit said in a warning tone.

‘I promise,’ Balthazar said quietly and looked up at him. For a long moment, Kit looked at him, before he sighed and left the room. 

It was easier said than done to keep his promise to Kit, though; it just never seemed the right time. Either it was hard to find privacy, or Peter had something to tell him that got them caught up in that conversation, or a third thing prevented him from asking Peter what he wanted out of their relationship. It was good to have Peter back with him, though, after John had left. 

Peter told him all about what they’d done and talked about, and he even acted out how John had reacted to trying one of the vegan options at Boyet’s that Balthazar had been trying to get Peter to try for weeks. It was clear that Peter loved his brother a lot. 

However, it was also clear that Peter had talked to John about them because of all the conversations he told Balthazar about, there was one that he kept almost mentioning before saying something along the lines of; ‘Forget it’ or ‘Doesn’t matter.’ Maybe he was just as afraid of the conversation as Balthazar was. If only Balthazar knew _why_ he was afraid of it. 

-

Balthazar woke up to kisses one morning and leaned into the warm body lying next to him. ‘That’s nice.’

Peter hummed. ‘Happy birthday.’

‘Urgh,’ Balthazar groaned and turned his face into the pillow. ‘Who told you about that?’

This made Peter chuckle, and he put his arms around Balthazar. ‘Kit might have mentioned it a few weeks ago.’

‘I’m going to kill him,’ Balthazar mumbled, but that only made Peter laugh even more and pull him closer. Soft lips pressed against his temple. 

‘I have a full day planned out,’ Peter revealed softly, and Balthazar finally opened his eyes to glare at him. 

‘Nooo,’ he said and cuddled into Peter. ‘All I want is to spend all morning in bed with you.’

‘Then it’s a good thing that the first item on my list is breakfast in bed.’

‘Nah, because that means that you have to get out of bed in order to make that breakfast, and I just can’t allow that,’ Balthazar said teasingly and wrapped his arms around Peter’s waist. He could feel Peter’s smile where his cheek rested against Balthazar’s head. 

Eventually, Balthazar’s phone rang and he had to let go of Peter, who took the opportunity to get out of bed and slip out of the room. The caller was his sister.

‘Hello?’ he said, sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eye. 

‘Happy birthday, little brother!’ Rosa said at the other end. She sounded like she’d been up for a few hours. That didn’t surprise him, though; she was quite the early riser. 

‘Thanks. How’s it going?’ he asked. Rosa was the sibling he talked to the most, but she’d taken a semester out to get some work experience at some company so he hadn’t heard from her in a few weeks. 

‘Yeah, good. It’s extremely busy, we’re in the middle of this very important project that has everyone working overtime; I had to sneak out to get a chance to call you. Have you heard from any of the others?’ she asked. He could hear wind on her end. 

‘Nah, you’re the first, but it’s fine. I only just woke up, anyway,’ he said, which technically wasn’t a lie. ‘I’m sure they’ll drop a message sometime in the next few days.’

‘Yeah, probably,’ Rosa said, sounding thoughtful. Their family wasn’t neglectful, not by a long shot – they were extremely loving and caring, and they meant the world to Balthazar. However, they did all get easily distracted and caught up in whatever art they were into. They’d probably forget Christmas if there weren’t so many of them. Now, there was always one or two who reminded the others that they should get a tree or get groceries for their Christmas meal. And birthdays were not a thing they made a big deal out of in their family. If you remembered, you called whoever had a birthday that day. If you forgot, there were no hard feelings. It was all cool. 

‘Do you have any plans for the day?’ Rosa asked then.

‘Nah, not really. Pete says he has a whole day planned, but...’ he trailed off in a series of indistinguishable mumbles. 

‘You’ve been spending a lot of time with this Pete, lately,’ Rosa said, sounding suspicious. ‘Will I ever get to meet him?’

‘Maybe,’ Balthazar mumbled and started picking at a thread in his blanket. He was still assessing how serious Peter actually wanted to be. 

‘Is he your boyfriend yet?’ Rosa asked. He’d told her everything, because... well, she was his sister. So she knew about the colours and the practically living together, and the not-quite-dating.

‘I don’t know...’ Balthazar replied, feeling guilty for some reason. 

Rosa sighed at the other end. ‘You should talk to him. Soon.’

‘Yeah, I will,’ Balthazar said with a sigh. ‘I promise.’

With another ‘happy birthday,’ Rosa said that she had to get back to work before her boss found out that she was on the phone, and hung up. Then he spent a few minutes scrolling through the messages on Facebook that were already rolling in; Paige had posted a photo on his wall that Chelsea had taken of the two of them a few months ago. It was a candid photo of the two of them jamming, each with a guitar, and Balthazar was smiling at something Paige had said. He couldn’t remember what it was, but he could remember that it had been a really good day. He saved the picture to his phone.

There was shuffling from the hall, and Balthazar got out of bed to see what was going on. Peter came walking down the hall from the kitchen, carrying a tray of breakfast. 

‘Hey, you’re supposed to stay in bed!’ Peter said, when he noticed Balthazar leaning on the doorframe.

Balthazar raised his eyebrows at him. ‘And you were supposed to stay in bed _with_ me so we’re even.’

Peter stopped in his tracks then, right in front of Balthazar and sighed with a smile. ‘Get back into bed, please.’

‘Fine, but I won’t be held accountable for my actions if you leave again,’ he said, and Peter laughed. 

‘Deal.’

They both got into bed, and Peter put the tray in front of them. It was full of Balthazar’s favourite food, and Peter entertained him with conversation as they ate. However, he wouldn’t say what they were doing for the rest of the day. That was a little frustrating. But Peter assured him that he had everything under control, so Balthazar took a deep breath and decided to put his trust in him. 

When they’d eaten, they went for a walk in the same park that they’d been in during their first proper date. Peter led them to a picnic bench where they sat down. It didn’t look like anything special, but Balthazar had a feeling of déjà vu when he looked at Peter. Their joined hands were lying on the table, and Peter had that sparkle in his eyes. This was where they’d shared their first kiss. 

‘I was going to wait until tonight, when the stars were out, to take you here, but I’m afraid the schedule wouldn’t allow that,’ Peter said, straightening out Balthazar’s collar.

‘Oh god, there’s a schedule? Pete, it’s _just_ my birthday, not some national holiday,’ Balthazar said with a laugh.

‘Not yet, anyway,’ Peter said, winking at him, which made him laugh, and he shook his head at the ridiculousness that was the man sitting in front of him. How lucky he was to have him.

Then Peter kissed him, and the laughter stopped. 

The whole day was filled with small gestures from Peter to Balthazar; a trip to the music store where Peter bought him new strings for his guitar; walking along the waterfront, which Balthazar had told Peter that he loved; coffee at Boyet’s, which was on the house, of course, courtesy of Fred Boyet, the owner, who’d always been really nice to Balthazar. 

Around dinnertime, they arrived at Peter’s flat, where Meg, Paige, Chelsea, Kit, Freddie, Bea, and Ben were waiting with a home cooked, vegan dinner, which they all swore that Ben hadn’t been allowed to help make. They ate merrily, some sat on the sofas, some on the floor, all enjoying good conversation. In a quiet moment, when he’d been shooed away from the washing up, Balthazar asked Kit who had organised all of this. 

‘Peter created a group chat a few weeks ago. He’s the mastermind behind it all. I told him you didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, but he insisted.’

‘He must have had some kind of help, though,’ Balthazar insisted.

‘The only help any of us provided was to cook that food. And even with that, he gave us a recipe,’ Kit said with a laugh. 

The thought made Balthazar’s stomach flutter. So far, the day had been kind of perfect; low key, intimate. If it kept going in that track, it was going to be his best birthday ever. 

Just as he’d had the thought, though, there was a knock on the door, and some people he didn’t know walked in with bags full of what he presumed was alcohol. Oh no. 

The people introduced themselves as Meg’s friends, and soon more and more people filed into the living room. Some were friends of Peter’s from work, some were friends of Bea, some were friends of Freddie’s, and the rest of Paige, Chelsea and Peter’s theatre group also showed up. Some of them knew that it was a birthday party and had brought a bottle of something with a bow on it, but others had no clue. 

-

Peter was in his element. There were people all around him having a good time, and there was no risk that he’d be put on the spot about whether or not he and Balthazar were dating. That was what had worried him most about having dinner with the others; if someone had asked the both of them at the same time, it might have terrible consequences. Besides, if everything went to plan, he’d know by the end of the night. 

Balthazar found him by the table – which had quickly become the drinks table – where he was mixing himself a drink. He was going light on the alcohol, since he had plans for the whole night and didn’t want to spoil it by getting drunk. 

‘Hey Balth,’ Peter said when he saw him. Balthazar seemed tense, holding an arm across his own front. ‘What’s up?’

‘I don’t know any of these people,’ Balthazar said, looking around.

Peter frowned. ‘I thought Kit and Paige made sure to invite someone you knew.’

‘I mean, yeah, there are a couple of people from my music classes,’ Balthazar replied before looking back at Peter. ‘But, Pete, I didn’t really _know_ them. I’m not even sure what most of them are called. I don’t really hang out with a lot of people. I like to just stick with a few close friends.’

‘Right, yeah. Sorry about that,’ Peter said, now feeling a bit guilty about the party. ‘The others thought it would be nice to throw a party in your honour so we decided to invite a couple of people.’

Balthazar shot him a look. 

‘I’ll admit, there are a couple more people than I’d thought there’d be,’ Peter laughed, and Balthazar sighed and shook his head. The worry in Peter grew a little. ‘Do you want to leave? We can if you’re uncomfortable here.’

‘Nah, I mean, you guys threw this party for me; it’d be rude to leave.’

Peter nodded and smiled at Balthazar, who made a solid attempt at looking more comfortable. Peter made a mental note to make sure that Balthazar was doing okay throughout the evening. And to not throw parties for him like this again. 

While Peter enjoyed the buzzing of people, music and conversation around him, catching up with some people he hadn’t talked to in ages and generally having a good time, Balthazar seemed to spend most of the time sitting in one of the sofas or standing around, watching the party. Sometimes someone would be sitting or standing beside him, talking to him, and Peter would feel a hint of relief, because Balthazar would be laughing or smiling or talking animatedly. But just as quickly as they’d been there, Balthazar would be alone again, looking out at the party. Once or twice, Peter would see him on the dance floor, even though he’d denied all of Peter’s own attempts at getting him to dance. That was okay, though; as long as he was having fun.

Mostly, though, Balthazar kept to the edge of the room, and nine times out of ten, when Peter looked to check on him, he was looking back at him with something akin to admiration on his face. 

Peter did his best to play the part of the host. He tried to talk to every single guest at least once, but his priority was to check to see if Balthazar was okay. 

After a few hours, though, it all seemed to get a bit much for him, and he disappeared into the kitchen, which was empty now; about a third of the party people having gone into town, thinning out the herd. Peter excused himself from the conversation he was having with Costa and Ben, and followed Balthazar into the kitchen. He leaned on the fridge, wanting to give Balthazar some space in case he didn’t want anyone in his personal space right then and there.

Balthazar was leaning on the counter and had his hands pressed against his eyes. That wasn’t good.

‘You okay?’ Peter asked, concerned.

Balthazar took his hands from his eyes and sent him a weak smile. ‘Yeah. Just have a bit of a headache. I’m tired, I guess. It’s been a long day.’

‘Yeah, I know. Sorry about the party, I didn’t know you weren’t into that stuff,’ he said, looking down at his drink. ‘I just wanted to give you everything today. You deserve that.’

Balthazar laughed a little, a sound that made Peter’s heart soar, and he looked up to see Balthazar shaking his head at him. ‘You’re unbelievable, Peter.’

Peter went up to him, no longer concerned that Balthazar didn’t want him there. ‘Your birthday should be special,’ he said, set his drink on the counter and put his hands on Balthazar’s upper arms.

‘You do realise that you made it special just by being here, right?’ Balthazar asked and looked down, his face turning red the moment he’d said it. Clearly, he hadn’t meant to say that out loud. 

A smile spread on Peter’s lips. He felt giddy. ‘Do you mean that?’

Balthazar nodded, still looking down, but Peter could tell that he was smiling. Then he looked up into his eyes. ‘Yeah, I do.’

He couldn’t help himself; he pulled Balthazar in for a hug, revelling in how Balthazar was leaning into it. ‘I’m really sorry about the party thing. I really sprung that one on you, didn’t I?’

‘Yeah, but everything up until the party was perfect,’ Balthazar said and pulled back. The look in his eyes made Peter believe that it was true, which made him feel a little better. Then Balthazar yawned. ‘And it’s not like the party was a bad idea or anything... I’m just really tired now.’

Peter took Balthazar’s face in his hands. ‘You do look exhausted. Wanna go to bed?’

Balthazar nodded. ‘You stay here and party with the others, though. I’ll be fine.’

‘Nah, I’m all partied out anyway,’ Peter said, though he knew that Balthazar could tell it was a lie. He wasn’t going to let Balthazar go home alone, though. Especially not on his birthday, and especially not when he still had a little something up his sleeve. ‘So, we have two options.’

Balthazar cocked his head a bit to the side. ‘And what might those be?’

‘Well, we could leave and go to your place, or we can go sleep in my room tonight. Your choice. Either one works for me.’

He looked like he thought it over for a moment. If Peter had to wage a guess about what Balthazar was thinking, he’d say that he was probably trying to figure out if he was up for the walk to his own place. He did look like he might actually fall asleep where he stood, but Kit was spending the night at Freddie’s, and this flat would still be full of people in the morning, so it wasn’t surprising to Peter when Balthazar gave his answer. 

‘My place,’ he said, and Peter nodded.

‘Your place it is. Just let me get something quick before we leave,’ Peter said.

They decided to meet by the back door before Peter went back through the living room and into his own room. From the drawer in his bedside table, he took out two envelopes that he’d prepared a couple of weeks before. 

It had been John’s idea. Peter had been complaining about how to talk to Balthazar about their... _thing_ , and John had suggested he do something creative, since Balthazar was a creative person – ‘Speak his language,’ he’d said – and after trying and failing miserably at writing him a song, Peter decided on the envelope idea. 

He carefully hid them under his shirt, held in place by the belt in his jeans, before he made his way to the back door. 

Balthazar was already there, waiting for him, and the two of them slipped out together and embarked on the walk home in the brisk spring night air. 

-

They didn’t talk much, just walked in a comfortable silence. Balthazar was all talked out, and it seemed like Peter understood that. It was nice to have someone who understood him without having to explain everything.

When they arrived at Balthazar’s flat, they quietly got ready for bed. Balthazar came back into his bedroom from having brushed his teeth to find Peter sitting on the bed with two envelopes in front of him. Balthazar laughed in confusion as he sat down opposite Peter. 

‘What’s this?’ he asked, pointing at the envelopes. One had a green dollar sign on it, the other a red heart. 

‘I have one last birthday present for you,’ Peter said, and Balthazar shook his head at him. 

‘This is way too much, Pete.’

‘Let me do this,’ Peter asked, and Balthazar sighed, but nodded. ‘You have to choose one envelope. Whatever’s in the envelope you choose, you get. But you can only choose one.’

Balthazar laughed. ‘You are so weird,’ he said affectionately.

‘Yeah, yeah. Choose.’

‘Alright,’ Balthazar sighed and looked at the envelopes. What was this supposed to mean? Which one did Peter _want_ him to choose? Was it a choice between love and money? If that was the case, it was an easy one. ‘That one,’ he said and pointed at the one with the heart on it. 

Peter smiled. ‘Alright. Open it, then.’

Balthazar picked it up; it was light. Carefully, he opened it and found a folded piece of paper inside. He looked up at Peter, who urged him to go on, so he unfolded it. It was a letter.

_Dear Balthy_   
_You make me incredibly happy, and not just because you’ve filled my life with colour. You’ve filled it with love and laughter as well, and for that, I am eternally grateful. You mean everything to me, and I hope that I mean a lot to you too._   
_Will you be my boyfriend?_   
_Love Pete_

Balthazar’s heart was pounding, and the smile was impossible to get off his face. He read the letter twice before he looked up at Peter, who now looked very nervous. Then he crawled over to him and kissed him. 

When he pulled away, he looked Peter in the eye and said; ‘Yeah, I’ll be your boyfriend.’

‘Yeah?’ Peter asked, looking and sounding genuinely relieved.

‘Yeah,’ Balthazar confirmed and kissed him again. 

He never found out what was in the other envelope and, frankly, he didn’t care.

**Author's Note:**

> So there you have it! Hope you enjoyed that!   
> If you want to find me on tumblr, I'm optimisticfairyprincess.


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